Shopping Efficiently Part Two Merchandise

Since most of us can only indulge in a perpetual dream of owning a walk-in that rivals (or even looks pretty next to) that of Carrie Bradshaw, we need to learn to maximize our closet real estate. In part one of this series we talked about editing your overstuffed closet by getting rid of the meh and making room for the amazing. Now, there will be plenty of time for shopping but first we need to work with what we’ve got. The main reason we want to merchandise is that it will make the process of getting dressed every morning a little more seamless and maybe even fun for some of us. It will also help you to pinpoint what you are missing, so when the time comes to shop you will have a better idea of what you need. Also, don’t forget to enter our giveaway below for a chance to win a two-hour shopping session with one of Vancouver’s finest, fashion stylist Nicolette Lang Andersen.

Assess Your Space

Whether you have a spacious walk-in, or you’ve already taken over your boyfriends side of your shared closet, this is the part of the process where your dream closet and your real closet are going to collide. Take a look at your space for what it is, and be realistic about how you envision the outcome will be. If you have a small cubby sized closet it isn’t going to emit the same wow factor that a full size ultimate dream style walk-in would. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t still have an aesthetically pleasing and inspiring space. You just have to have the right tools, and of course the right mindset.

Increase Your Square Footage

If you don’t have a huge space, you need to take advantage of what you do have. Hopefully you’ve cleared up some space during your edit that leaves some substantial hanging and folding space freed up. Now’s the time to take anything out that has nothing to do with your daily getting dressed routine (boxes, suitcases, storage, linens, etc). The less clutter you have, the more open the space will be and that means more fun (or at the very least, ease) in getting dressed. Secondly, if you are strapped for space you can purchase extra bars to suspend from your existing ones to expand your hanging space, clear boxes with labels for shoes and accessories, and it doesn’t hurt for all your hangers to be the same colour. Remember to hang only what needs to be hung and to fold only what needs to be folded. More casual pieces like t-shirts and denim need to be folded, as well as fragile items like cashmere sweaters and heavy knits. Dresses, silk, blouses, or anything that wrinkles easily is best to keep hung neatly on hangers.

Creatively Curate

Though most of you might dread it, this part is the most fun for me. I usually do a switch around every couple of months because I get bored tremendously very easily and I secretly love going through clothes and organizing them in sequence of colour, style, fabrics, and favourites (seriously, can I organize your closet?!). Since I have already tried everything, I have found that organizing by style has proven to work the absolute best (in subcategories by colour, sleeve length, hem length, etc). Try out a couple of different ways and see what works best for you.

Set Up Shop

This could be largely influenced by all my years in retail and styling, but this one rule has always served me well; display your items as though they are part of a stylish little boutique. Stack sweaters and jeans in neat piles from dark to light; line up your clutches and handbags in a row (like books) so they are all in clear vision; make your shoes accessible and visible by investing in a shoe rack or shelf and displaying them by style or colour. Keep in mind, you won’t wear something if you can’t find it. Having every piece ready to grab and go at a moments notice will make you much happier at the end of the day. Too much upkeep? No one ever said that having an amazing wardrobe was easy so make it a priority to go into your wardrobe everyday or every other day to straighten things up. It should only take a few minutes and having the comfort of knowing that everything is clean and ready to go will keep you at ease the next time you open those doors to get dressed for work or for play.

Up next: How to use simple and key tools to gain inspiration and create a shopping list so that all of your future shopping trips are seamless and efficient.

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About the author

Before Stylust was created in January of 2011, Lindsey freelanced as a fashion stylist in Vancouver, BC and worked at a fabulous Main St. boutique. A love for fashion and style was always prevalent in her life. She now has combined her true love of style and a new-found love of web design and social media in the form of Stylust, where she contributes as the founding editor as well as creative director and stylist for most of our editorials.